


The Waves of a Storm

by atlasoverthemoon



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternative Universe - Kingdom, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, M/M, Minor Kozume Kenma/Kuroo Tetsurou, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2020-11-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:02:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27641120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/atlasoverthemoon/pseuds/atlasoverthemoon
Summary: The Kingdom of Hikari is expecting to have its young prince, Hinata Shouyou, coronated on his 20th birthday. However, tensions rise as the threat of war looms upon the kingdoms and Hinata is met with a mysterious dream. He departs on a quest with an unlikely partner, who seems to have been born for the sole purpose of getting under his skin, across the Four Kingdoms in search of answers that will hopefully ease the immense sense of dread hung over his soul, which grows with each passing day.
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio
Comments: 8
Kudos: 9





	1. The Prince of Light

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone!! So, I couldn't resist and decided to start another KageHina fic LMAO, but I will still be focusing on my Band AU until that's finished.  
> This story is going to be interesting; I'm creating basically an entire fantasy world and I will be loosely drawing on ancient Central/South American religious beliefs and mythologies for the plot (it will be integrative and VERY loosely based off of them but please let me know if I get anything wrong!). I'm really excited for this story and I hope you all find it intriguing as well!  
> I'm thinking this will be a pretty long fic, and it may take a bit to do some world-building in the beginning, but I promise it will be action-packed with our favorite lil Haikyuu boys.  
> Any criticism/feedback is always welcomed! Hope y'all enjoy~

_Long before there were humans, there were giants._

_They roamed the Earth with no sun nor moon to guide them along their way as they lived in an age of endless darkness. There was an unspoken rule between the giant beings and their Creator; a rule meant to never be broken._

_However, as disorder ensued among the giants, the Creator took it upon themself to punish the beings. The Creator wept until waves of a great storm flooded the lands and destroyed the giants. Trying again, they decided to first create the sun and the moon. The creation of human beings came after._

_The Creator would return to Earth to observe among their creations, but much to their displeasure, would become saddened by the failures of mankind._

_Someday, the Creator's sorrow will once again be so vast that the beings of Earth will suffer a massive flood constructed of salty tears._

* * *

_A child wails. They sit on a dirt patch, head tilted up toward the sky as sobs rip from their chest. A grubby hand clutches around a red knee. Blood dots against the newly acquired scrape._

_“I told you to be careful,” a calm voice says._

_The child hiccups. He whips his head around toward the voice. Strands of his choppy ginger hair stick to his now wet cheeks. Another onslaught of heavy tears stream down._

_“I–,” he chokes on a hiccup, “I just wanted to catch the butterfly!” he half-screams through his cries._

_His mother kneels down in front of him, orange tendrils framing her round face. She pats his head tenderly. “Wipe your tears. It’s just a scrape. The pain won’t last forever,” his mother coos, as she takes a small handkerchief to the child’s snotty face._

_The pain won’t last forever..._

Hinata shook his head gently. His vision came back into focus as he returned from his daydream. More like a memory, he supposed. A slight breeze gently brushed against his face. He inhaled deeply through his nose, immediately being met by the salty sent that lingered in the air. _Ah,_ he thought as a serene smile tugged at his lips, _the sea._

He continued to stare out of his bedroom window. The sun was positioned just before its highest point, warming up his face pleasantly as he leaned forward on his palms to try and get closer to the warmth.

Being a couple of stories up, he had a clear view of the ocean. It twinkled under the ministrations of the bright orb in the sky, the waves rippling in the distance. It was undoubtedly a beautiful day, a day meant to be spent enjoying the outdoors. 

But he shook the thought from his head with a sigh. The day, in fact, could not be wasted on such pleasures. There were things he needed to do. Obligations he had to tend to.

He snuck one last peek back toward the deep blue that swallowed the horizon before moving away from the window. No matter how tempting the ocean was, he could not give in to his desires.

Since he was a child, Hinata could remember being called to the outdoors. An innate sense of adventure whispered his name from the depths of nature, and his playful soul wanted nothing more than to dance along with the waves as the sun beat down on his skin. But, of course, that was no way for an heir to the throne to act. No, even as a toddler, _fun_ was never meant to be in his vocabulary.

Even so, he had tried. Hinata would sneak away from the palace to meander about the surrounding villages and play with children his own age. But, he would always end up getting caught and helplessly dragged back to the confines of his guards. He would even force his advisors and caretakers to play pirates with him, much to their dismay. They were never good playmates.

His mother had tried to give him freedom, allowing for him to get some amount of entertainment from playing in the palace gardens, even if it were never long enough to satisfy his seemingly endless stamina for playing.

Growing up, he was constantly reminded that cautiousness and patience would be his greatest virtues. Impulsiveness was not something to be praised. However, that had always gone against his nature.

He stepped out of his bedroom, locking the heavy wood door behind him before he began to descend down the spiraling staircase. His boots clunked onto the cold stone with each step, the sounds reverberating off of the walls of the slim tower. His mind grew numb as his thoughts wandered. He often found himself lost in his own head; overthinking and daydreaming. The gears in his brain were constantly whirring, even if it was just to think about the made up worlds of his mind.

Hinata couldn't help but think about how distasteful his personality was for this lifestyle. Everything that came naturally to him was the exact opposite of what was expected of him. He always had a constant need for movement rather than stability. His immediate response would always be curiosity instead of caution. He was anything but the person his father had wanted him to be, the person that the kingdom needed. Someone logical and thorough who considered every angle before taking action.

That just wasn't him.

Over the years, though, Hinata had trained himself to dull his passion to a mere ember under the prying eyes of advisors and authorities. He couldn't allow himself to be perceived as the reckless young prince he had grown up as. He was 19 now, less than a couple months away from his coronation, and so he just could not afford to slip up.

But sometimes– only sometimes– he would find himself unable to rein in his compulsiveness.

***

This just so happened to be one of those times.

Hinata had grabbed an apple from the kitchens as a late breakfast and was on his way to the library to do some light research. He needed to brush up on the ancient customs of his kingdom, Hikari, before his coronation. However, the Divines had other plans for him that morning.

"Hinata," a deep voice called from his right just as he stepped out of the kitchens. His grip on his apple tightened slightly. Stiffly, he tried to continue his walk toward the library as if he hadn't heard the perpetrator. "Oi! Hinata, boke! I know you heard me," the voice insisted.

Yeah, the Divines definitely had it out for him. _What had I done in my past life to deserve this,_ he pleaded silently, eyes tilted up to the sky. Reluctantly, he turned to face the speaker.

A tall man strode up to him, his right hand rested lightly on the handle of a broadsword at his hip. His face was devoid of all emotion except for the slight crease between his brows that Hinata figured was just permanently a part of his face. As he got closer, Hinata could make out the beads of sweat that glinted off of his tan skin.

 _He must have been training_ , Hinata thought just as the man stopped right in front of him.

"Dumbass, listen when someone's talking to you," he grunted harshly.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Bakageyama. I hadn't realized you were talking to little 'ole me," he responded, eyes wide with feigned innocence even though he used an insulting nickname. He brought his unoccupied hand up to his chest. This man was probably the only person to have ever talked to Hinata like this, and it ticked him off. "My apologies, _your highness_ ," Hinata said mockingly.

Kageyama's eyes narrowed into a hard glare as his hand on the hilt of his sword fisted tight around the handle. "Why are you always so childish, you fucking idiot," Kageyama snapped.

Hinata's hand dropped as he sent a glare of his own to the taller man. He felt his face scrunch up into an uncharacteristic scowl, his shoulders tensing with quick temper. "You're the idiot, idiot!" he shouted back before he could think of something better. His fingers instinctively flexed around the apple in one hand, probably bruising its soft flesh.

"Good one," Kageyama deadpanned. "Next time, maybe leave the thinking to the grownups, hm? Wouldn't want the prince to strain that little brain of his, now would we?"

That did it for Hinata. Moving off of its own volition, his arm threw the apple directly at Kageyama's head. The dark-haired man easily dodged it, swiftly shifting his head to the side as the fruit whizzed past his face. Kageyama's head whipped back to Hinata so fast he thought the other man would give himself whiplash.

"Did you seriously just throw that at me?!" Kageyama exclaimed, features etched with ferocity. 

Hinata simply stuck out his tongue, squinting his eyes at the man. He heard Kageyama take in a sharp inhale as his shoulders rose. He had to admit, he was being childish, and his head would be on a platter if his father saw him like this, but Kageyama had started it, so there was no harm in it this time, right?

Right.

Hinata huffed, crossing his arms over his chest as he shot Kageyama an irritated look. Of course, he got one back ten-fold.

"What did you even want, Bakageyama," Hinata grumbled out. 

Kageyama stood frozen, staring at him for a long pause before he finally straightened and the air dissipated away from one of malicious intent. He pulled back his shoulders and upturned his nose, as if they had been talking about casual politics the entire time. His face went back into its usual indifference even though Hinata could see the irritation swimming in his irises. The dynamic between him and Kageyama had always left his head spinning as the man was able to quickly switch from wanting to chop Hinata's head off to strictly business.

With the new demeanor appropriate for the skilled palace soldier that Kageyama was, he spoke. "I had wanted to ask if there were any new developments concerning Nakano. The Defense Unit of the Royal Guard hasn't gotten any real information on the issue, other than the fact that we have to take in about twenty new recruits." Hinata noticed the small twitch in his brow as he mumbled, "And on such short notice, too."

Hinata still felt a little ruffled, could feel the energy thrumming just underneath his skin. He took in a slow breath as blue eyes stared into his brown ones.

"Has your father said anything to you?"

Hinata sighed softly, resisting the urge to run a hand through his muss of hair. "We're discussing matters about Nakano in today's meeting this afternoon. The King wants me to write up a collective document outlining the current situation and my thoughts on how to go about dealing with the current threats. He claims it is to prepare me for when it's my turn to rule," Hinata trailed off, shifting his gaze to the side as he muttered, "Although, I bet he just doesn't find the ordeal worth his time."

It was silent for another moment, and when Hinata looked up to Kageyama, he wore an expression Hinata couldn't quite place. But before he could analyze it further, it was gone and his mask of nothingness replaced it.

instead of dwelling on it, Hinata offered, "If you have any suggestions or ideas of your own, feel free to share them with me. I'll look over them and bring it up with the King at the meeting." He gave a small shrug, trying to keep his suggestion casual as he was still ticked off with the other man and didn't want to seem _too_ friendly.

Kageyama gave a small nod. "I will. I'll have it delivered to you before this afternoon," he said stiffly, so in contrast with the man's casual anger that was directed at Hinata just minutes before. Without saying any departing words, the black-haired man turned on his heel and walked into the kitchens.

Hinata sighed, deflating in on himself as he was left alone with a bruised apple laying a few yards away and the pang of an oncoming headache.


	2. As Tensions Rise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter 2! Hope y'all like the story as the plot starts to progress and I build the world up more!  
> Any criticism is welcome and comments and kudos are greatly appreciated!! :)

Beams of soft sunlight filtered through the large windows that took up most of the East wall, facing out to the ocean. It brought out the warmth of the dark walnut furniture that adorned the library, creating a cozy atmosphere. The North and South-facing walls were covered from floor to ceiling by shelves of the same dark wood, filled to the brim with leather-bound books. The tall walls of the room led into long pendentives that met to support the large dome ceiling. Hinata inhaled deeply, allowing the smell of ink and old paper to fill his lungs.He had grown accustomed to the smell after hours and hours of lessons he got from his advisors since he was a toddler. He walked toward the North wall and plucked a couple of books out from the shelf. Hinata placed said books onto one of the few tables scattered in the middle of the room. Feeling the roughness of the thick paper against his fingertips, he began flitting through a book that discussed the customs and traditions of the Four Kingdoms of Atsushi.

"Atsushi, a vast and beautiful land, is made up of the Four Kingdoms. In the South lay the Kingdom of Hikari, known for its proficiency in nauticality with most of the nation’s borders are surrounded by ocean. The people of Hikari traditionally value adaptability and vigilance. Their insignia is represented by a white crane, as their customs revolve around the ocean and the sky. North and Central Atsushi, the one Kingdom that touches all of the other Kingdoms, is Satomi. Majority of the nation is occupied by a thick forest. The kingdom specializes in agriculture, as the citizens are knowledgeable in plants and animals. Passion and the pursuit of knowledge and growth are most valued by the people of Satomi. A giant tree insignia symbolizes the Kingdom of Satomi. The East is occupied by the Kingdom of Nishiyama. The nation is engulfed by a mighty mountain range that travels along the entire Western border, separating the kingdom from Satomi. Other than the mountainous terrain, Nishiyama is known for its expertise in architecture and cartography. Much like the summits that surround them, the people of Nishiyama value stability and security. The nation’s insignia is that of a black and white koi fish. In the West lay the Kingdom of Nakano. Nakano is the largest and most diverse nation of Atsushi. It is most recognized for specializing in blacksmithing and weaponry. Traditionally, the people of Nakano are adept in combat and warfare, as they value strength and intelligence. The kingdom is represented by an insignia of a lion."

Hinata sighed as he continued to flip through the book. He knew this information was important, but he had learned the basics during the last 19 years of his life. He knew of the kingdoms, what they specialized in and how their people liked to operate. He knew of the tension between his kingdom, Hikari, and the Kingdom of Nakano, sparked by a history of conflict. And, with that, he knew how important this meeting was going to be today. Tensions were rising between their kingdoms once again as rumors of possible threats floated between the nations.

A light tap on his right shoulder tore him from his reading. Hinata looked up to see a swoop of brunette hair. He visibly relaxed as he met the twinkling brown eyes of his advisor. 

“Hello, good sir. How are you doing on this lovely day?” he inquired with a slight tilt of his head.

Hinata groaned. “Oikawa, please don’t act like that right now.” Oikawa always made a show of using too polite ways of addressing him just to get under his skin. Hinata had never been one for formalities. Oikawa chuckled as he moved to sit in the seat across from him.

“Yes, yes, I know. But I noticed that you were glaring at that book while you were reading, so I thought I’d poke a little fun at the flame,” he said with a sly smirk. “What could that book have possibly done to you? Or maybe,” he continued, his eyes glinting playfully behind his glasses, “your irritation was caused by an earlier encounter? With, oh, I don’t know, a tall boy whose name rhymes with Shageyama.” His smirk grew as his eyes stared into Hinata’s soul.

 _This man knows me too well for my own damn good._ Hinata groaned loudly once more as he let his head fall onto the already forgotten book. After a few, long seconds, Hinata shifted slightly to peer at Oikawa from his dejected position. Oikawa’s head layed gently in his palm as he waited patiently for his little episode to finish. He continued to watch him silently. The older man’s brown hair seemed to glow gold from the sunlight that permeated the room. Behind the square frames of his eyeglasses, black ink accentuated his narrow eyes and made their brown color pop. He was handsome, especially for being nearly 10 years older than him, yet not looking a day over 20. He’s been in his life for as long as he could remember, so Oikawa was familiar with Hinata’s antics. He didn’t like to admit it, but Oikawa probably knew how to decipher and handle his emotions better than he could himself. He sighed and straightened back up, ready to continue on with their conversation.

“He is risen,” Oikawa chortled, lips still graced with a smirk.

Hinata hummed, not fully acknowledging his teasing. “I ran into Kageyama on my way here. We bickered, I threw an apple at his head,” he waved a dismissive hand, “You know how it goes.” He let his head loll to the side, suddenly feeling exhausted just thinking about the indelicate man.

“Hm, yeah. I figured as much. When he gave me some papers to deliver to you, he seemed more content than usual.”

Hinata groaned again, louder this time. He gripped at the roots of his orange hair in frustration. “Why is he _pleased_ by my grievances? And ones caused by him, no less!” Hinata let out in exasperation. Since they met roughly four years ago, the two of them largely interacted through quips and teasings, usually always turned sour by Kageyama’s grumpiness and Hinata’s incessant need to not lose.

“C’mon, it’s not that bad,” Oikawa offered lightly. “He’s just an emotionally stunted boy who doesn’t know how to communicate with others.

Hinata rolled his eyes at his advisor. “Yeah, whatever. I don’t understand why I have to like him when you don’t.”

Oikawa scoffed, his smile dropping into mock offense. “I’ll have you know, I’m just indifferent to him. And if thoughts of his wasted talent keeps me awake some nights, it’s not because of Kageyama personally.” Oikawa shrugged casually, face going back into one of relaxed composure. “He just finds your interactions amusing, that’s all. Nothing actually against you. I bet he even considers you a friend.”

Hinata huffed, remembering all of the times Kageyama had yelled “dumbass” or “fucking idiot” to him. “I’m not so sure about that.” He didn’t wanna think about it. “So,” he began, changing the subject, “what was it that you came to bother me for? I have some reading I want to get done before our meeting, and I’m sure there are other things you need to tend to as well.”

“You hurt me. I can’t just come to chat with my favorite little prince?”

“I see how it is,” Hinata replied gruffly before letting out a sigh. “I’m the only one, so there’s no way for me to be your favorite,” he replied, voice back to its normal tone. Oikawa opened his mouth, but Hinata began again before he could speak. “Where are the papers Kageyama gave to you?”

Oikawa snapped his mouth shut, letting his thought go and silently reached into his coat. He pulled out a few papers that were folded in half and handed them to him. “Here you go, darling. I don’t find it wise of me to be telling you this, but he wanted me to relay the message that he didn’t expect you to fully understand all of the terminology, and that you ‘didn’t need to worry your pretty head over it’.” Oikawa winced at the sound of Hinata slamming his forehead back down onto the wood table. “Yeah,” he whispered, “I should have seen that coming. Bad judgement on my part.” He scooted his chair back, emitting an ungodly noise. “Well, Hinata,” he started as he got up, deciding to leave the boy in his distressed state, “it was great catching up with you, but you’ve kept me from my duties for far too long. I’ll see you at the meeting. Farewell, Chibi-chan,” he said with a mocking bow and a wink before he departed from the library.

Hinata lifted his head back up from the table. His headache was back. Ignoring it, he grabbed the papers and began shuffling through them. There were eight sheets outlining Kageyama’s thoughts and concerns, even offering questions to ask the King that would help the Royal Guard keep up with the situation. He had even thought out tactical ideas to various theoretical situations that could play out between the two kingdoms since he hadn’t been given all of the information that he needed. Most of his solutions focused on strategizing the defensive plans for the kingdom. _I hate to admit it but…_ “He’s as thorough as ever,” Hinata muttered to himself as he began integrating Kageyama’s notes with his own.

* * *

After a few agonizingly long hours of reading, Hinata found himself seated in the situation room of the palace. The room was small, taken up mostly by a long, rectangular table. Matching dark walnut chairs lined the lengths of the table. While it had the same type of furniture as the library, the atmosphere was not warm and welcoming. Cold seemed to slip through the stone walls and seep deep into his bones. At one end of the table was a larger, throne-like chair. In it, sat the King of Hikari.

The King was a large man. All hard lines and sharp edges. Freckles scattered across his tan skin. A permanent crease sat between his brows and wrinkles formed around his light gray eyes. He probably had been considered handsome in his youth. When him and his mother had met. Before he became a king. But the years of rule were etched into his skin and silver threaded through the dark brown of his hair. It was evident that Hinata had taken after his mother’s looks.

Hinata was seated at the King’s left with Oikawa next. To the right of the King was Lord Tsukuda, his top advisor. The man was not his favorite. Hell, he was the _last_ person he’d ever want to be left alone in a room with. He exuded an aura that made Hinata want to crinkle his nose any time he was in his vicinity. Poison dripped from his mouth before he could even speak a word. Tsukuda was entitled, crude, and most importantly, creepy. Even the way he smiled sent unpleasant shivers through his body. Just looking at his face was evidence enough for the skeletons he’d expect to find in Tsukuda’s closet.

There were three more of the King’s advisors seated at the table with them. The men sat on the opposite side of Hinata and Oikawa, crouched slightly as they muttered to each other. The King cleared his throat, signaling the beginning of the meeting. The three straightened to attention, ceasing their conversation. Instead of the King, however, Oikawa started.

“Thank you all for coming today,” he said with a small adjustment of his glasses before continuing. “We have convened to discuss the current situation with our sister kingdom, Nakano. Recently, rumors have been flitting through the nations of some alarming actions taken upon by the people of Nakano. We’ve gathered information from anonymous sources that claim the nation’s government has been experimenting with new weapons for advanced warfare. These weapons, if utilized, would be catastrophic to large areas of any nation. There are also rumors suggesting that the Nakano army has been accepting more recruits. From this information, we can assume that the kingdom may be preparing for a war. And while we are unsure of this fact, due to our complicated and ugly history with Nakano,” Oikawa stated with a clear voice, but a scowl adorned his face, “it would be smart to consider the possibility of them waging war against our kingdom.”

There was a short silence in the room before he continued again. “All of the information that we have gathered so far is substantial, mostly based around rumors. However, we are here to discuss possible strategies because it is better for our nation if we are being cautious and prepared.” Oikawa leaned back in his chair, hands clenched together in his lap, indicating he was done with his brief. The slight scowl never left his face.

All Hinata could think was that it didn’t belong there.

Before anyone else could, Tsukuda offered his thoughts. “Well, as you said, we need to be cautious,” he said haughtily. A narrow smile crawled onto his face. _Creepy._ “I propose that we take action. We should gather our troops and act first before they can bring the war to us. Let’s subdue Nakano’s forces to protect our people. These threats to our kingdom should be considered seriously. The people of Nakano are known for their hostility. They’re natural born fighters. It runs in their blood, much like vigilance runs in ours.” He tilted his nose upward in pride. “The threat of another war has been looming between our nations for decades. We have all the evidence we need.”

The King hummed, not fully stating his thoughts on the proposal. He then turned to Hinata. “Shouyou.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The King stared into his eyes. Calculating. Weighing. “I believe I mentioned to you to have some plans prepared for this meeting. Shall you share them with all of us?” It was asked as a question, but he knew it was a demand.

Hinata nodded stiffly. He tore his eyes away from his father’s to look at Oikawa. He was already staring at him. Hinata closed his eyes and took in a small breath, remembering the notes he had gone over in the library. “The threat of war is not to be taken lightly. However, with that being said, there is no justifiable evidence to suggest that nakano plans to bring war to our nation. Yes, we do have a strained history with the kingdom; however, we have been living in peace between all four nations for the past six decades. In these last sixty years, there have been no incidents that we are aware of that could have sparked hostility from Nakano. Furthermore, the information that we have gathered on this situation have been collected from anonymous sources whose details were built upon rumors. There is no way for us to credit these sources and their information.”

Hinata paused briefly to glance at Oikawa. The scowl was finally gone from his face.

He took another breath as his nerves calmed. “I consulted with the Captain of the Royal Army. They suggested taking defensive measures to ensure safety of the kingdom in case Nakano does, in fact, declare war. I have detailed outlines for procedures that I’d like to run by all of you at a later time in order to keep this meeting brief. However, the Captain wanted me to emphasize that the best course of action as of right now, due to the lack of substantial proof of the threat of war, is to build and strategize our defenses and to focus on accelerating training for our recruits.

“As we near my coronation, I’d also like to start discussing plans to sign a treaty with Nakano. Other than these recent rumors, our kingdoms have been in a state of peace. I believe that it is important for us to settle our differences. A treaty will prevent future threats and release strain between our nations due to uncertainties. Evading war would avert costs and casualties which–”

He was cut-off by a boisterous laugh. His eyes widened. He slowly turned his head toward the King. What he saw _scared_ him. The King was laughing. _He’s laughing. What had I said, what made him–_

“Oh, my foolish little prince. How naive.” He chortled, shaking his head. His eyes finally met his, and he stilled. Hostile danger swam behind his gray irises _._ “Evade war. Don’t make me laugh. I know you’re still young, so let me put it this way.” The King leaned in close as his eyes continued to bore into his own. He couldn’t look away. He was scared. Petrified. The King continued, voice dripping with malice, “War is a necessary evil. War is the only real way to bring peace to the world.” They stared at each other for a few beats longer. He was daring Hinata to oppose him. But of course, he couldn’t, and the King finally leaned back. His stoic expression returned.

All Hinata could do was hyperfixate on a spot on the table in front of him to keep from puking onto the floor. He heard the King continue to drone on, but couldn’t find it in himself to pay attention.

 _What had I been thinking? I should have known better. I should have known that he was too traditional to think that something so simple as a treaty wouldn’t satisfy him. I’m so stupid. To think that I could prevent fighting. Save funds. Save_ lives _._

_How pathetic._

The screeching of chairs against the floor brought him from his thoughts. _Ah, the meeting’s done_ . Hinata wasn’t sure how long he had spaced out for, but he got up out of his seat and moved out of the room with his eyes downcast. He didn’t even bother to wait for Oikawa. _Kageyama’s probably wondering how it went_ , Hinata thought as he turned down a corridor. Golden light filled the hallway through the many windows that lined the wall. He looked out to find the setting sun. It was hidden by a line of trees, but the sky was colored beautifully. Oranges and pinks faded into a starry night of navy. Judging by the sky, he guessed the meeting had lasted a little over an hour. _Kageyama’s most likely still at the training quarters. I really don’t want to talk to him about the meeting, but I guess I should keep him informed._ A small frown adorned his face as he continued to walk.

Suddenly, a hand gripped at his shoulder harshly. He turned his head slightly and was met with a disgusting grin.

He wrenched away from the hand in disgust. “Oh, I’m sorry,” Hinata spoke quietly as he rubbed his hands down the front of his pants. He gave a deep bow, trying to school his features. “You startled me, Lord Tsukuda,” he lied as he straightened slowly. _I must have been too lost in thought to hear him approach_. He silently cursed himself. “What may I do for you, sir?”

“Your Royal Highness,” he greeted with a bow. “My apologies for the scare,” Tsukuda offered, but the venomous grin never left his face. “But I’m glad I caught you after our meeting. I just wanted to make sure you were okay… I know how difficult it can be to talk about war, especially for a young boy like yourself.” His eyes racked up and down his body. Hinata had to keep himself from shuddering in disgust. “You know,” he continued, “I don’t think that Captain of ours is very competent either. I mean, not only is he the same age as you, but he is from _Nakano_ no less.” He said the word with so much disgust that it surprised Hinata with how open he was with his blatant distaste. _Really, it shouldn’t surprise me at this point_ , he thought _._ “They’re all so impulsive, allowing their emotions to guide every decision they make.” He shook his head, “Disgraceful. I’m afraid that his thoughts on the situation are biased and that he may be corrupting you. So, I advise that you take whatever the boy says with a grain of salt. We need you in the right state of mind to decide what’s best for this kingdom.”

Tsukuda took a small step closer to him, and Hinata took a step back before he could stop himself. The taller man noticed this, and his grin grew vicious. “I just want you to remember that I’m always available to discuss strategies and plans moving forward.” He took another step closer, so close Hinata could see the crookedness of his teeth. “Come to me _whenever._ I’m always available for you.”

He just stared at him. _What the_ fuck _am I supposed to say to that, you perv!?_ Anger and disgust boiled in his chest. He took a sharp inhale. “Thank you, sir. I appreciate the offer.” He gave a short bow. “I must be on my way, have a good evening,” he stated quickly. With that, Hinata turned abruptly and tried his best not to sprint out of the corridor.

 _The audacity of that man._ He huffed. _Seriously, what was up with today?_

* * *

Hinata sat on a stone wall outside of the training quarters. The sun had set already, and the sky was now littered with blinking stars. A chill had set around him, but it wasn’t unwelcome. The Moon Festival would be coming soon and that meant so was the cold. 

He loved the Moon Festival. They’d celebrate the Moon Goddess for her generosity as she was the one who guided them through darkness. The festival lasted three days in the middle of winter, as the moon appeared full for those three days. The festival was filled with warm foods and gleeful dancing. People of the neighboring towns would gather on the palace grounds for the last night to watch a light show in the sky that boomed over the palace. It would shake the ground beneath them as colorful lights twinkled in the sky, brighter than the stars. 

When he was younger, his mother would take him and his baby sister walking around the towns that surrounded the palace to observe the many lanterns put up around the homes and shops. They’d walk along the streets in the brisk air, holding hands as their mother told them stories of the Moon Festival from her home kingdom in a faraway land. By the end of the night, Hinata would return to the palace full of warm cider and sugar-coated fried dough, content to the point where he could barely keep his eyes open on the walk home.

Hinata leaned back, kicking his legs slightly as he looked up to the moon. It was just a sliver of a crescent, but its presence calmed him. He liked to think that the Moon Goddess shined down for him only, to guide him. He wouldn’t complain if he spent the rest of his life just watching the celestial body. 

The sound of a door slamming shut tore him from his thoughts. His head whipped toward the building to see Kageyama finally exiting the arena. He was wearing the same baggy cargo pants from earlier, sword slung against his hip. The tall boy sighed loud and long, still unaware of Hinata’s presence. As Kageyama turned to continue down the path, Hinata cleared his throat obnoxiously loud. Kageyama jumped, his hand finding the hilt of his sword immediately.

“Hey. It’s just me,” Hinata said into the dark.

He watched Kageyama relax completely. “Dumbass,” he exhaled loudly. “You scared the shit out of me. Thought I was about to get ambushed.” Kageyama came to stand in front of Hinata while the latter still sat on the wall.

“Why would someone planning to ambush you clear their throat before attacking?” Hinata questioned. “Thought you’d know better than that Mr. Captain of the Royal Guard.”

Kagyeama gaped, his mouth slightly falling open like a fish out of water. Under the soft light of the candle lantern he carried, Hinata thought he could see a slight blush dusting the taller man’s cheeks. He was probably just imagining it.

Kageyama ran a hand through his hair. “I–I don’t know! Maybe they did it by accident!” he exclaimed, fumbling for an explanation. “Maybe they have a weird thing about their targets _knowing_ they’re there before gutting them alive,” the boy muttered absentmindedly. The description made a picture of Tsukuda pop into his head and he shuddered. Kageyama noticed this. “Hey. Are you cold? How long have you been out here?” he asked, voice laced with the slightest bit of concern that Hinata didn’t know how to deal with.

“No, no. I’m fine. And I’m honestly not sure how long it’s been, but I think I watched the sun set.” He placed a finger on his chin. “Now that I’m thinking about it, you _did_ make me wait quite long.” He glanced at Kageyama. “It wouldn’t be inappropriate to feel guilty about making me wait in the cold of the night.”

Kageyama was left gaping again. Fear slowly crept onto his face. _Ah,_ he thought, _maybe I can see why Kageyama finds this so amusing._ He let out a loud laugh, unable to hold it in anymore. Kageyama was still stiff. “Bakageyama, it’s okay. I was just joking,” Hinata chided, toeing one of Kageyama’s thighs with his boot.

Kagyeama finally moved again. A scowl settled onto his as he sent a glare to Hinata that held no fire behind it like it usually did. “Idiot,” he huffed and plopped down onto the grass in front of Hinata. He straightened his long legs out in front of him so that his feet rested flat against the wall just below where Hinata sat. He leaned back against his palms and looked up to him. The wall was only about four feet tall, so Kageyama barely had to tilt his head up to look at him. “So,” he began to speak, “what was it that you were waiting out here for?”

Hinata looked down at him. The lantern between them flickered, licking light against their faces in the dark. “I figured you were interested in knowing how the meeting with the King went this afternoon.”

Kageyama perked up slightly at that. “Oh, yeah. How’d it go? Did you mention some of the stuff I gave you? You didn’t bring my note papers into the meeting with you, did you?” he asked with a small amount of horror, fear lightly creeping onto his features again.

That made Hinata laugh again. He remembered the little doodles of cartoon birds wielding swords and shields that littered Kageyama’s papers. They were honestly very cute, and Hinata hadn’t expected the soldier to be one to draw.

“No, I didn’t bring any papers with me into the meeting,” he chuckled into his hand. Kageyama visibly relaxed.

Even though Hinata had waited outside to tell Kageyama about the meeting, he didn’t really want to talk about it. “It… didn’t really go as well as I had hoped,” he mumbled, looking off to the side. He started picking at loose rocks on the wall as he continued. “I mentioned that you suggested focusing on building our defences and to work with the recruits. They hadn’t really had any opposition to that. But then…” he trailed off. _Am I embarrassed? Yeah, I guess. They thought my ideas were childish. What will happen when I’m crowned next year? Would they still think me unfit for my position?_

“Hinata?” Kageyama asked quietly. Judging by the way Kageyama used his actual name for once, Hinata had been quiet for too long.

He sighed. _Bite the bullet, swallow it whole._ “When I started talking about my own plans,” he started as the King’s aggressive laugh echoed in his mind. He swallowed against the lump in his throat. _There’s no point in swallowing the bullet if you choke and die on it, dumbass_ , he chastised himself in an oddly familiar and gruff voice. “I had thought of a plan to possibly make peace with Nakano through a treaty. It would probably take a while, but at that point we wouldn’t have to worry about any possible threats and unforeseen declarations of war. It would save resources. Save _lives_ . But…” Hinata took another deep breath. “They didn’t agree. They found my plan to be inadequate. Childish. _Laughable_ even.” The King had _laughed_ at him in front of his advisors. In front of Oikawa. _Damnit. I should have talked to Oikawa before coming here. He could have calmed me down._ He bunched up the front of his pants into fists, his knuckles turning white. _Everyone always belittles me. They only see me as the dumb little prince that has his head stuck up a fairy’s ass._

“What the fuck?” Hinata’s eyes flicked to Kageyama. The man’s hands were curled into the grass beside him. Kageyama’s eyes locked onto his and he flinched. He could see flames dancing around in them. Hinata looked on in shock. He looked… angry. “Seriously? They laughed at you?” Kageyama barked in disbelief, rage twisting in his voice. “What dickheads,” he said through clenched teeth.

“Yeah,” Hinata huffed, “tell me about it.” He gave a rueful laugh. “You wouldn’t believe the stuff I’ve been through. Imagine how much easier things would be if I were the boy my father wanted. If I were taller, stronger, more masculine.” He lifted his hands in exasperation, “Who knows? Maybe the King would accept me as his child rather than just another pawn in his palace.” He placed his hands back down onto the wall and gripped hard. The loose stones bit against the skin of his palms. _Maybe I wouldn’t get sexually harassed by the King’s advisors_ , he thought bitterly. Just thinking about Tsukuda made him want to peel all of the skin from his body. The man _disgusted_ him, and yet even if he said something to the King, nothing would change.

Kageyama stood abruptly. Hinata stared up at him as his face twisted with anger. “Who was it,” he growled out.

“Who was what?”

Kageyama’s jaw clenched. He learned forward, baring his teeth. “The one who _harassed_ you.”

Hinata’s eyes widened. _Had I said that out loud?_ He shook his head, trying to feign his own irritation so he wouldn’t have to admit anything to the man. “Why the hell would I tell you?” he barked out, crossing his arms over his chest defiantly.

In a flash, the front of his shirt was clenched between Kageyama’s fists. The taller man wrenched him forward, nearly pulling him off of the wall. He could feel Kageyama’s hot breath fan across his face. “Tell me,” he snarled as his grip tightened around the fabric, “so I can beat the _shit_ out of him.” 

“I can fight my own battles, _thank you very much_ ,” Hinata replied haughtily before he could think.

“Ha!” he gave a short laugh that contained no merth, glaring down at Hinata with icy blue eyes. “Yeah, right. Like you’ll do anything about it.” Kageyama hissed, “You never do anything. You’re always so happy-go-lucky and _passive_ . It _infuriates_ me.”

“Oh, you wanna know what infuriates me?” Hinata said back, grabbing the front of Kageyama’s jacket in return. A sudden flash of anger sparked in his chest. “ _You_ , Kageyama. _You_ infuriate me. How do you expect me to tell you who harassed me when _you’re_ the one who’s been harassing me since the day I met you. So, if there’s anyone to be mad at,” Hinata seethed as he got even closer to Kageyama’s face, their noses just centimeters apart, “ _it’s yourself_.”

A few long seconds passed with them in each other's faces, eyes glaring hard at each other and panting as if they’d just ran the entire palace grounds. Then, Kageyama shoved Hinata back as he released the front of his shirt. Hinata almost fell off of the wall again, letting go of the jacket to catch himself. Kageyama swiftly turned away, grabbing the lantern and stalked back down the path.

Hinata stared at his retreating form in disbelief. _What the hell just happened? What did I just say?_ “Shit,” he cursed under his breath. 

Today really wasn’t his day. 

He hopped off the wall and began toward Kageyama. He was already leagues ahead, being carried effortlessly by the strides of his long legs. Hinata began to jog in order to catch up. 

“Kageyama,” he called, but the boy in front only responded by speeding up. “ _Kageyama!_ ” Hinata was now fully running.

He finally caught up and snatched Kageyama’s forearm. They both stopped abruptly. The taller man still wouldn’t face her.

“Kageyama, look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean what I said back there,” he began, looking at the back of his head. “It was just… misplaced anger, alright?” He paused, but when no response came, he repeated in a low voice, “I’m sorry.”

He heard Kageyama inhale deeply. In a scarily calm voice, he spoke. “It’s fine, let’s just head back already.” Without looking back, he began walking once again and Hinata let go. They walk back to the main part of the palace silently. Hinata would steal a few quick glances toward the other boy, only to be met with a stoic expression.

When they finally walked into the East wing of the palace, Kageyama sighed. He turned toward Hinata finally, and they just stared at each other for a second. He gave another small exhale before he bowed. “Goodnight, Your Highness,” he murmured before turning down the hall and beginning his walk to the South wing.

Hinata watched him until he disappeared around a corner. It was his turn to sigh. He walked through a few doors until he was met with the spiral stairs that led up to his room. With each step, his boots felt heavier. He hadn’t realized how tired he was. Or maybe that little fiasco had drained him more than he could have ever expected.

Finally, he procured the key that hung around his neck from underneath his shirt, unlocking the door and swinging it open. He clunked into the large room, peeling off his boots as he made his way over to his armoire. Unbuttoning his white button-down, he peered into the mirror attached to the inside of the armoire door. He caught a glimpse of the dark bags under his eyes as he bent to shuck off his pants.

After changing into his clothing meant for sleeping, Hinata crawled into the vast bed and fell into a deep sleep within minutes.


	3. Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So uh this took a bit to write lolll  
> Hopefully it's good and y'all enjoy it
> 
> Kudos and comments are greatly appreciated~ :))

_ A wave crashes. It reaches out across the sand, before being pulled back into the blue mass. It repeats the cycle as little waves lap up onto the shore. _

_ Hinata lifts his head. The sun is high and bright in the sky. He stares directly at it, but it doesn’t sting. He doesn’t feel the usual comfort of warmth on his cheeks either. He lowers his head to look down to his feet. Sand encircles his toes. He wiggles them, but isn’t met with the familiar feeling of the grains slipping between them. _

_ He takes a look around. In front of him lies the ocean. It twinkles as it waves to the sun, meeting light blue in the straight line of the horizon. He looks down the beach. The shore stretches out to both sides of him, disappearing into the vast distance with no obstructions. Hinata twists to look over his shoulder. The sand he stands on spreads behind him, never-ending and touching the sky at the horizon just like the ocean on the other side of him.  _

_ Everything is too bright. _

_ When he turns back toward the ocean, eyes are staring back at him. Hinata startles, trying to step back in surprise, but he soon finds that he can’t move.  _

_ It takes him a minute to assess the figure in front of him. With a sudden realization, he’s taken aback, once again, because the figure staring back at him is himself. It’s a perfect clone, from the hue of its light brown irises and bright ginger hair to the trickle of freckles that fan across the tops of its cheeks and nose. _

_ They stare at each other for a moment, before the clone turns to face the water. Hinata continues to stare at the back of its head– or his head. He doesn’t know how long he stares for, until everything around him is suddenly engulfed in darkness. He wonders if it was turning into nighttime already, but when Hinata looks up to the sky once more, he is not met with the moon and stars. Something is blocking his vision from seeing the sky above. As he watches a bit longer, he recognizes that the mass is, in fact, moving. _

_ His eyes widen as fear flashes through his body like lightning.  _

_ A wave. _

_ The sound of weeping echoes around him, ringing loud in his ears. The colossal tidal wave grows greater as it moves closer to the shore. Taking up more of the sky above him and curving in on itself as it threatens to crash and swallow him whole.  _

_ The wailing stops abruptly. Cut off to be replaced by complete and deafening silence. He figures he would be able to hear the rustle of a grain of sand if it were toppled by a light gust of wind.  _

_ Then, a bright light engulfs his vision. He winces against the sudden invasion. Hinata’s met with the sight of his clone’s body overtaken by light, seemingly emitting from within it. _

_ There’s nothing for him to do other than to watch in awe as the clone raises its arms up over its head. A great light bursts from its center, the rays reaching out and spreading in all directions. Hinata quickly shields his eyes with his arm just as a wave of hot energy hits him. It’s so powerful it blows his hair back from his forehead and nearly knocks him over. _

_ He waits for a breadth of a moment after it dies down before he straightens from his crouched position, slowly peering over his arm.  _

_ He gasps. ‘How?’ he tries to speak, but his tongue feels like cotton in his mouth, and his lips just end up mouthing around silent words. The clone stands before him, still staring out at the ocean. But the wave is gone and the water is now completely still. Too still. Not a single ripple on its surface as evidence of the wave that once threatened.  _

_ Hinata continues to stare in disbelief. He reaches a hesitant hand out to his clone, his fingers mere inches from its shoulder when the sand from beneath its feet starts to give way. Hinata steps back suddenly, moving back as the sand slowly sinks into an ever growing hole under the clone. His clone falls through, scrabbling at the edges, grabbing desperate handfuls of sand. But it’s fruitless. The sand sinks into the growing, bottomless pit. The clone’s eyes meet Hinata’s, and the worry and panic in its eyes strike him. Off of his own accord, he moves forward, reaching out to the clone’s scrabbling hands. _

_ Their fingertips brush. _

_ But he misses the clone’s hands. Hinata looks on in horror as it slips into the pit, mouth wide open in a silent shriek. _

_ All too late, he notices the hole growing toward him and the sand beneath him gives way, as well.  _

_ He’s falling. Hand outstretched in a desperate attempt as he’s descending further down.  _

_ The last thing he sees is the sun hanging in a blue sky directly above him. _

_ Then, he’s submerged in the darkness. _

Hinata woke with a start. He sat up in his bed abruptly, hunched over and clutching his arms around himself as he tried to stop the tremors. Sweat gathered beneath on his forehead, making his bangs stick disgustingly to his skin. Even his back felt damp. 

He let out a shaky breath. “What the hell was that,” he whispered to the empty bedroom. Hinata had to remind himself that it was just a dream. But for some reason, it had felt  _ so real _ . The dread of falling into the dark pit was still pinching his chest, making it hard to get full breaths into his lungs. He shook his head and took in one more long inhale.  _ It was just a dream. _

And yet every time he repeated the thought, the less he believed it.

He couldn’t get rid of the feeling. The feeling that… that the world was ending. In that moment, when he looked up to the massive wave, all he could think was that the world he once knew would be no longer. For some reason, he knew that when that wave hit shore, it would destroy everything and anything in its path.

Hinata took in another unsteady breath. All he could do at this point was focus on his breathing. Focus on keeping himself calm. He had to think, but the frantic nerves were fraying and muddying any rational thought in his mind.

After a few short minutes, he rose from the bed, his feet coming into contact with the cold floor. There was no way he could go back to bed any time soon. His hands were still trembling as he swung a coat around his shoulders.

He stepped shakily to his door to slip on his boots, taking a short glance toward the giant clock. 4:47 AM. Yeah, there was definitely no way he could go back to sleep now. He’d have to be up within three hours anyway.

Hinata slipped the key from beneath his shirt, unlocking the door and quietly stepping out of his room. The sound of his footsteps echoing down the staircase was eerie now. He felt a shiver crawl up his spine, hugging his coat closer to him as he reached the end of the stairs.

He was restless, but he wasn’t exactly sure he could do at this hour. Under any other circumstances, he may have stepped out onto the balcony above the palace gardens to watch the sun rise from beneath the ocean, but now the thought makes his stomach turn.

Hinata walked down the quiet corridors of the castle, the small lantern in his hand illuminating the stone walls and the many doors as he passed them. He hadn’t really been paying attention to where he was heading, not having anywhere in particular he wanted to go, but found himself stopping under a large archway. He rose his lantern up to his face as he stepped into the large room. Walking along the side of one wall, he saw that it was lined with shelves and shelves of books. He moved off of the wall and toward the center of the room, finding a lone arm chair sat in front of a large brick fireplace. A short, wooden table occupied the space in between.

He gave a sigh, placing his lantern down on the table before moving over to the front of the fireplace. Crouching down, he took a few logs of wood from the pile next to the mouth of the fireplace and placed them inside. He grabbed a bundle of steel wool beside the pile of wood, turning to reach for his lantern behind him. Once the wool ignited from the flame in his lantern, he placed it on top of the wood in the fireplace and watched as it slowly caught fire.

He stood back up, dusting off the front of his pants as the fire grew, yellow and orange flames licking up to the top of the fireplace, hitting his face with comforting warmth. Hinata picked up the lantern and walked over to one of the walls. He knew this room was a study, and while it didn’t have as many books as the library, it did still contain a decent collection from generations and generations of scholars from the monarchs before him. 

Remnants of his dream still flashed behind his eyelids every time he blinked, so he began searching the shelves for a book that would hopefully take his mind off of it– or better yet, make him fall asleep. Hinata normally struggled to stay awake when reading, so maybe that would be the case this time, even as his body rejected the thought of going back into that dreamscape.

His fingers brushed against hard leather as he trailed across the spines that lined the shelves. Titles were engraved into the spines in spiraling letters of gold. Then, his fingers stopped at a slimmer book. He nearly passed over it without any thought, but he was intrigued as this book didn’t have its title on its spine, just a small crescent moon painted in silver. Hinata plucked the book out from the rest, turning it over to see that there was no title on the front cover either. He flipped the book around in his hand, seeing that the entire thing was blank other than the moon.

He moved back over to the armchair, placing his lantern on top of the taller, yet narrower side table to his left. Hinata opened the book up to its first page, finding a small note scribbled in the corner of the title page in characters he couldn’t read. “ _ Oh the Moon, How it Shines _ ” was written in bold lettering in the center of the page. He quickly flitted through the rest of the pages, finding little paragraphs of writing accompanied by illustrations. 

_ Ah, perfect _ , Hinata thought. Somehow he had managed to pick out a children’s book out of the entire room. He really wasn’t in the mood for thinking and so he hoped this little chapter book would do the trick. 

He began reading the first page as the book went into an elaborate story of how the Goddess of the Moon came to be. Hinata snuggled further into the large armchair, listening to the soft crackling of the fire in front of him.

* * *

Hinata awoke to the feeling of something lightly tapping on his shoulder. He roused slightly, mumbling incoherently before opening up bleary eyes. It took him a moment before his vision focused onto the figure in front of him.

“Good morning, Your Highness. I’m sorry to wake you, but it seems you had fallen asleep whilst reading,” Yamaguchi spoke once Hinata sat up in the armchair, pointing to the book in Hinata’s lap.

It took Hinata a few seconds before he remembered last night, the odd dream and then ending up in the study. He looked behind Yamaguchi, who was one of the palace servants, to see that the fire was gone, the wood now completely burned to ash. He then noticed the stream of light filtering through the glass windows above the fireplace. He guessed the reading worked, since he couldn’t remember ever falling asleep.

“Ah, that’s fine, Yamaguchi, thank you!” he thanked cheerily even though his mind still needed some time to fully wake up. Yamaguchi had always been very kind, although maybe a little timid at times, so he and Hinata had gotten along very well in all of their encounters. “Do you by chance know what time it is?” Hinata asked, suddenly remembering he had things to do today.

“Ah, yes, um, the last time I checked it was around 7, Your Highness.”

“Perfect! Thank you again, Yamaguchi!” 

The boy bowed with a shy smile before leaving Hinata in the room by himself once more. Hinata looked down at the book in his lap, not remembering a single word he had read last night, and tossed it onto the small table in front of him. He still had a large part of his day free before he would have to do “princely duties,” as the King had described them.

Hinata darted out of the room. He ran through the halls, honestly not exactly sure where he was going until he ended up outside, nearing the large field for training.

He stopped in his tracks. Only one person was out on the field, swinging a wooden sword with various step patterns and strikes. 

_ Kageyama. _

Why Hinata had subconsciously gone to find Kageyama, he wasn’t sure, but he guessed since he was here already, might as well just talk to the other man.

He walked closer to the oval clearing with Kageyama’s back to him. He watched as the man’s muscles rippled with every movement, even visible under the black fabric of his t-shirt as it clung to his sweaty skin. Kageyama did a particularly impressive move, stepping out to the side to kick at the imaginary attacker and then spinning around quickly to slice at the pace in front of him.

Once Hinata reached the edge of the training area, he let out a loud whistle. The noise seemed to startle Kageyama, his shoulders jumping and his head whipping around to stare at Hinata from over his shoulder.

“That guy sure is taking a beating,” Hinata snarked, gesturing to Kageyama’s nonexistent sparring partner.

The blue-eyed man glared at him, unamused by the joke. “What are you doing here,” Kageyama asked rather impolitely.

Hinata brought a hand up to scratch the back of his head. “Ah, well,” he started, “you see, I’m not totally sure, if I’m being honest.”

Kageyama, once again unamused, glared at Hinata with a deadpan look. “Are you serious?”

Hinata huffed, shifting from leg to the other as he tried to choose his words carefully. “Um, well, I mean there was something that I wanted to talk to you about,” he trailed off. His eyes were darting around nervously, and when they flicked up to kageyama’s face, the man had the same look of indifference. Hinata’s shoulders slouched as he dropped his head. “If you’re up to listen,” he muttered finally.

There were a few moments of silence before he heard a frustrated groan. Hinata straightened just as Kageyama dropped his wooden sword unceremoniously to the ground and walked toward Hinata. He sat right in front of Hinata, bending one leg at the knee and stretching out the other one. The taller man began stretching out his legs at Hinata’s feet. From this angle, Hinata could see the man’s back and shoulders flex as he pushed his upper body closer to his leg that lay flat on the ground. 

“Well, go on with it, idiot,” Kageyama suddenly spoke, breaking Hinata out of his reverie. 

The orange-haired man shook his head slightly before plopping onto the ground in front of Kageyama. “Right, okay well, I’m not exactly sure where to start with this so just listen through the whole thing, okay?”

Kageyama groaned, but he didn’t say anything else in protest so Hinata started.

“So, last night, I had the craziest dream,” Hinata began, picking at blades of grass and waving his arms around as he spoke. “I was in this weird place where the ocean met an endless desert, and it all stretched on for  _ miles _ with nothing else in sight. And it just felt odd, like I couldn’t feel the heat of the sun or the sand at the bottom of my feet.

“And then something even  _ weirder _ happened. Suddenly, I was standing in front of me, like a clone of myself was just staring back at me, and it freaked the hell out of me. I couldn’t move or do anything.” Hinata looked up, seeing the sun still hanging pretty low in the sky. After a moment, he continued.

“And then everything got dark,” he spoke, but this time in a quieter voice as he stared at the sky above him, “and I looked up to the sky to see this wave, so huge that it blocked out the sun. There was the sound of someone crying echoing all around me as the wave grew larger and larger.

“I–,” Hinata paused, closing his eyes and taking in a deep breath, “I genuinely felt  _ scared _ . But, then, with a bright flash of light, the entire wave was gone and the entire sea went completely still.”

Hinata finally looked to Kageyama, the man now done with stretching and staring at Hinata so intently he nearly flinched back. They stared at each other for a few seconds until the other man spoke.

“And you’re telling me this because?”

Hinata groaned, throwing his head into his hands.  _ I’m gonna just have to say it _ , he thought with another small groan. With his head still buried into his hands, he quickly spit it out. “I think it’s some kind of premonition warning me about the end of the world and that I’m the one who is supposed to stop it,” he said, jumbling his words together as they spewed from his mouth.

“What,” Kageyama breathed out. Hinata picked up his head, seeing the black-haired man taken aback, his eyes wide as he looked at Hinata, dumbfounded. “Are you serious?”

“Stop asking me that,” Hinata huffed, crossing his arms over his chest, “of course I’m serious.”

Kageyama’s lips parted. “Hinata, you have to be fucking with me, right? You’re not seriously thinking that dream of yours actually  _ meant _ anything.”

“And why can’t I? Since when were you the expert on dreams.”

“I– I don’t have to be an expert to know that dreams aren’t real!” Kageyama yelled desperately. 

Hinata squinted his eyes into a glare, pointedly throwing it at Kageyama before whipping his head to the side. “You wouldn’t understand. It  _ felt _ real, Kageyama. I know I sound crazy, but I know what I felt.”

He heard Kageyama huff out a long sigh. “Dumbass, there’s no way–”

“I’m serious.” Hinata looked back at the man, staring at him with determined resolve that seemed to surprise Kageyama. He needed him to realize how grave this dream had felt.

“Idiot, you’re seriously gonna rely on a  _ dream _ to come to the conclusion that the world is coming to an end–”

“Yes. And I want you to help me.”

Confusion scrunched up Kageyama’s face. “Help you?”

Hinata wasn’t exactly sure what he was suggesting, because he hadn’t even thought about what he would do to try and stop whatever his dream had illustrated to him. He placed a hand on his mouth as he thought for a minute. There wasn’t much they could do with the information they had now, so the only seemingly plausible thing to do was to try and find answers.

“Look, there has to be  _ someone  _ in Atsushi who knows about things like this, dreams and prophecies and whatnot. So, what if we travelled to the other kingdoms to gather any information we can about this dream I had.”

“You want to travel across the  _ entire continent _ to follow this stupid idea of yours? Are you kidding me, dumbass?”

“It’s not  _ stupid _ , I told you, I know what I felt and–”

“And you’re insane.”

Hinata took in a sharp inhale. His eyes narrowed into slits, mirroring the look Kageyama was throwing him. His mind was reeling as he tried his best to think up more ways to convince Kageyama. The thing was, he had to convince himself as well. He hadn’t given anything much thought, but for some reason, he just  _ knew _ that he didn’t have much time to act.

His eyes landed on the wooden sword forgotten a few yards away.

“If I beat you in a sword fight, you’ll help me.”

Kageyama gawked. “Why the hell would I do that?”

Hinata let his head lull to the side. “Fine,” he sighed, “I’ll just go by myself, all alone on this journey for who-knows how long.” He shrugged, looking innocently down at the ground. “Nobody would know where I went, or if I’m even alive.

“And,” Hinata continued, shifting his eyes to Kageyama, “they would find out you were the last person I spoke to before my disappearance. If your guilty conscience doesn’t kill you, the court surely will.”

Kageyama growled, his face pulling into a fierce scowl. “You little shit.”

Hinata smiled cheekily in response. He wasn’t the dumb and ignorant prince people made him out to be. “So is that a yes?”

“You’ve been hanging out with that fucking advisor of yours too much,” Kageyama grumbled. “Fine,” he huffed out, getting up from the ground, “if you  _ somehow _ beat me, I’ll maybe consider helping you with your stupid wild goose-chase.”

Hinata whooped, jumping up from the ground and going over to join Kageyama toward the middle of the arena. Kageyama hands him an extra sword from over on the side before the two separate. Hinata twirls the sword in his hand, feeling the familiar weight in his hand. He faced Kageyama, sliding his foot along the ground as he set into his starting position. The other man mirrored him, clutching his own sword in two hands.

Hinata smiled, his eyes trained on Kageyama as his mind honed in on the situation at hand. “Give me your best, Captain.”

Something flared in Kageyama’s blue eyes, and Hinata barely had any time to register it before the other man spurred into movement.

Kageyama lunged at him, taking no time to swing his first attack at Hinata’s left side. Hinata quickly brought his sword up to block the hit, their wooden swords colliding with a loud  _ clack _ . His arms strained slightly at the amount of power Kageyama was putting into the attack. 

_ He really isn’t holding back _ , Hinata thought to himself. An easy smile appeared on his face.  _ Good. _

Hinata parried the next blow Kageyama initiated, getting more used to the strength behind his attacks and countering them. Kageyama was fast and strong, always having perfect technique with every move. He was skilled in both strategy and combat, and people often described him as a genius swordsman, a man bred for war. And maybe he had been. There were obvious reasons he was the youngest captain the Royal Guard had ever seen. 

But Hinata wasn’t helpless, either. He quickly dodged an oncoming swipe, spinning around and swinging his own sword to narrowly miss Kageyama’s side. What he lacked in strength and size, he made up for in agility and endurance. Hinata feinted a jab to the right before sidestepping and making his elbow come into contact with the other man’s ribs. The taller man let out a grunt as he stepped back to get out of Hinata’s range. He was aware that Kageyama was leagues ahead of him, but he could still put up a fight.

They continued to go at each other, lunging and swinging as the other dodged and countered. Hinata could feel the sweat building up on his forehead, but his muscles felt alight with adrenaline. He did a particularly large, and maybe just a tad reckless, swing of his sword at Kageyama’s chest, but the man ducked down out of the way quickly. And suddenly, Hinata’s back was slamming into the ground as his feet were kicked out from under him. All of the air in his lungs left him in one giant gust, leaving his lungs stinging and back aching.

Kageyama stood up, straightening from the kick he just delivered and looked down at Hinata with a smug look. “See, you should’ve known you couldn’t win–”

Before he could even finish his sentence, Hinata was up. He quickly spun to stand behind Kageyama, bringing up his sword to the man’s throat.

“What was that?” Hinata asked easily, his voice sweet with mocking innocence. 

Finally, the black-haired man’s brain seemed to catch up with the situation. He knocked his back into Hinata’s chest, successfully pushing away from him and whipped around.

“You bastard! I already knocked you down!”

Hinata grinned, placing his arms on his hips and puffing out his chest. “But I wasn’t completely incapacitated!”

“I–, you–,” Kageyama floundered before he growled, glaring hard at Hinata. He took a step back before crouching into his starting position, clutching his sword in both hands. “You’re on,” he snarled.

Hinata’s smile intensified as he went back into his own stance. Without much of a warning, he bounced up onto the balls of his feet and lunged toward Kageyama.

* * *

Hinata panted, his arms spread out beside him as he lied on the ground. Rocks poked uncomfortable into his back and the sun burned his eyes as he looked up at the sky above him. The yellow orb was right above him, now that it was nearing midday, and it nearly sent shivers up his spine as he was reminded of his dream.

The sound of soft panting beside him takes him out of his thoughts of the dream, and he turned his head to the side to look over at Kageyama. The man was in a similar position, his chest rising with each deep inhale as they stared up at the sky.

They had sparred for hours, not stopping until they couldn’t possibly move anymore and the sun had slowly climbed its way up the blue sky. Hinata had claimed to have lost count of the rounds as they went on, but really he knew that the actual score right now was 47-45, Kageyama. He just really didn’t want to admit defeat.

He had been surprised by Kageyama’s stamina, though. He knew the taller man was skilled, but no one had ever been able to keep up with him before, not even Oikawa when they practiced every now and then. It made Hinata wonder why they had never practiced together before.

Kageyama groaned as he stood up from the ground. Hinata watched as he dusted himself off before turning to him. He stood over him, blocking the sunlight out from Hinata’s eyes. They stared at each other for a moment before Kageyama brought up a hand between them. Hinata accepted it and clasped their hands together, thankful as Kageyama helped haul him from the ground.

Kageyama let go before turning his back to him, bending over to pick up their swords. Once he stood, he paused, his back still to Hinata.

“Fine.”

Hinata cocked his head in confusion, then voicing a small “what” once he remembered Kageyama couldn’t see him.

The taller man gave a frustrated sigh. “I’ll help you,” he muttered. Hinata’s eyes widened and his jaw dropped. He hadn’t been expecting Kageyama to agree to helping him, even if he had beaten the man. “Meet me at the docks right before the break of dawn tonight,” he continued, not waiting for a response. He then turned his head slightly to glance at Hinata from over his shoulder. “Don’t be late.”

And with that, Kageyama walked away toward the training building next to the field. Hinata stared at the retreating form as excitement bubbled up in his chest. Once he was out of sight, Hinata allowed himself to whoop loudly, pumping a fist into the air as he jumped.

The rest of the day, even throughout the gruesome meetings with the King and the other advisors and Lords, a crazy smile never left his face. Even Oikawa had asked what he was so happy about. His cheeks had begun to hurt, but there was nothing he could do about it, really. He was just so excited, and honestly a little astonished. 

After supper, Hinata went directly to his room to begin packing. He was going to travel light, only bringing the essentials for their journey. He stuffed some clothes and some small trinkets into a small sack. His pack was nearly full when his hands stopped, hovering over the gold compass on his desk. 

He was suddenly hit with a wave of memories. Flashbacks of his mother and his younger sister, their sweet smiles and the same bright orange hair as his. There was a sharp pain in his chest and his eyes stung, a feeling he knew all too well when thinking about them. His mother’s words echoed in his mind as he snatched the compass up and stuffed into his pack.

_ “May you always find your way in this world, no matter where the universe takes you.” _


End file.
